It was a terrible decision, but enough with these kneejerk reactions. Bortles was caught up by trying to do too much in a bad situation. With the team's only offensive TD's, both by rushing, and the pocket collapsing on him every other play, with less than 2 seconds of coverage on average before he had to scramble all game, versus the Cards O-line affording Gabbert 3-4 seconds... 1-2 seconds doesn't read like much of a disparity on paper, even less on an internet message board, but it means the world for an offense's opportunities. One millisecond late, and instead of Gabbert stabbing the heart of the Jags for a 50+ yard TD strike, and he's sacked by Campbell OR stripped and ball turned over. That's just a millisecond's value on that play. But he had at least 1-2 full seconds of extra time more than Bortles had this game.

When your O-line is missing a starter, it can hurt. When you're out 2 starters on the O-line, and you're giving up more sacks than almost any other game of the season, with apparently the least protection afforded the QB all year, your entire offense will suffer.

You don't go from having the most rushing yards per game to having your lead rusher produce 20 yards in a game "because of the quarterback." It all starts with the O-line, and an almost half-depleted O-line results in major negative impact.

AND with having your two best receivers with the most experience with your QB BOTH OUT... honestly what do you expect?

Take away any other QB's 2 starting line men, and his 2 best receivers, see what happens. Maybe it won't hurt Brady or Brees, but who are we kidding - of course it will. Every QB will be hurt to varying degrees.

Bortles made an awful decision, and then Marrone actually bailed him out by making a worse one. Bortles's blunder was not fatal. It just negated our D's hard fought take away.

I'm not calling for Bortles's or Marrone's head. Rome wasn't built in a day. The new era of Marrone/Coughlin's Jags won't be built in 1 season, and certainly not determined by 1 game given away by 1 awful play call, or one awful turnover.

I've been a Jags fan since 95. I remember when the big deal was Brunell taking Beuerlein's job. Now we have a 3rd QB whose last name starts with B.

So far this year Bortle's performance is less Brunellian and more Beuerlesque -

- only he doesn't have the likes of dynamic duo Jimmy Smith and Keenan McCardell active for him. His top 2 options Robinson and Hurns are both out. And with an O-line also struggling with 2 starters out, able to produce virtually nothing for the team's leading rusher, this is what happens. But speaking of 2, he still managed to break free for 2 TDs.

Only a fool would expect flawless performance with all these circumstantial odds against, including playing out west where Jags go to die.

It's Win some, Lose some in the NFL. At least we've found a way to win more and lose less with our starters. I'm not a diehard Bortles apologist. He has to earn it this season. So far he's helped more than hurt, and mostly without his best receiver. He's still not consistent enough, but definitely improved and showing a better command and grasp of the flow.

Why people keep forgetting that with both of his top receiving weapons available, just 2 years ago this son of a gun threw for 4,400 yards and 35 touchdowns against half as many pick's is beyond me - one of the top performances by a sophomore OF ALL TIME. We know he has it in him. We just have to find a way to facilitate this. They forgot how last year and insisted on micromanaging his mechanics to disastrous results, just making things far worse.

This is nothing to overreact about. They want to bring this team back to ground and pound scheme, but that's just not going to work with 40% of the O-line starters out evidently.

The story of the Jags for the last 10 years has been 2 steps forward and 3 steps back, such a sad theme for so long that the schematic shift with Marrone and Coughlin was long overdue.

If Bortles doesn't make that one stupid blunder, he's pretty much the hero of the day for stepping up and taking it to the house twice. Even the best screw up especially with that kind of pressure. Bortles tried to do too much and Marrone got too fancy. We beat ourselves but we will march on.

---